The incomparable and transcendent techno artist known as Richie Hawtin, aka Plastikman, hosted an Ask Me Anything (AMA) on Reddit today. Over the course of the two-hour discussion, Richie answered questions directly from him fans. Here is what we learned:

Tinitus is a problem with me and most of my DJ friends… think about it, I’ve been pummelling my ears for over 25 years, there’s bound to be some damage… but I do the best to keep things in check (doctor checkups, ear plugs etc) and definitely bringing my own sound engineer to ALL gigs now to make sure the monitors are not only good but also correctly setup etc…

2. He has been kicked off the decks by club owners.

Funny enough the first time I played at SPACE on Ibiza AND at Cocorico in Italy I got thrown off the “decks” … both times the club owners didn’t like what I was playing… thankfully that was in 1991/2 and I got over it! Happy to say, both clubs enjoy having me play now!

3. He’s dabbled with LSD.

5. It’s not about the technology you use, it’s about how you use the technology.

Analog/Digital — Turntables/CD’s/DVS – the technology that you choose to use as a producer/artist/performer should be transparent, it should be something that allows you to channel your unique “spontaneous” energy/ideas/feelings as direct as possible, so that people hear and experience YOU and your own personal interpretation of the music you are playing and/or performing

The whole process was an EXciting EXperience of EXploration… If I didn’t like it , or feel that it was a valued addition to the entire Plastikman collection, I wouldn’t have released it. However, EX is an EXploration into what Plastikman should/could/might sound like in 2014… after ten years there were so many expectations and it was quite nerve-racking thinking about all that again… so I’m very happy to have finally EXposed myself to everyone again, musically, and very happy to keep my recording momentum going and keep pushing to see where Plastikman can go in the future. Making music again makes me VERY HAPPY… and that’s really the main point!

7. He listens to all the music you send him.

I’m listening to all the demos that come in to MINUS… many of the releases of the past two years have come from people who just send things through those channels!

I have someone downloading all of my music and then putting it ALL into a DROPBOX folder.. then whenever I open my computer (mostly on planes) I have all the most up-to-date demos/promos and I listen to them myself, one-by-one. Sometimes this process is quite enjoyable, sometimes downright painful… but it’s the first and most important step in preparing for a DJ performance… although I try not to prepare too much… as I like to fly by the seat of my pants when I’m up there performing…

8. He likes to keep things fresh when he performs.

I’m not really one to play too many old tracks. I’m happy to leave that to people who are still hearing and discovering these old tracks for the first time… playing them as if they are brand new! That’s much more exciting for them than it is for me!

9. Becoming an electronic music producer requires dedication and…

TIME! There’s so many people making electronic music now, so many possibilities, plugins, synths, drum machines, software programs…. TAKE THE TIME TO FIND YOUR WAY THROUGH ALL OF THESE POSSIBILITIES… find yourself, your own unique musical personality, and THEN let that shine through.

10. Plastikman may be coming to a venue near you next year.

There’s no more plans for any Plastikman shows for 2014. But definite plans underway for 2015 and beyond and I hope that we’ll return to both the US and Canada then!

11. Wait, there’s something else… he doesn’t like pickles.

I don’t like pickles.

Boom, there you have it. No pickles on Plastikman’s plate. Read the full AMA on Reddit. Also make sure to pick up his recently released Plastikman album, EX, on Beatport now.